Emerson, the Stoics, and Me
Timeless Wisdom for Living an Authentic Life
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- $189.00
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- $189.00
Descripción editorial
“This is a beautiful book, full of ideas that could help restore America’s genius for freedom and promise.” —Thomas Moore, New York Times bestselling author of Care of the Soul
A lifelong Emersonian scholar, teacher, and spiritual seeker reveals how American philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson’s twelve essential teachings hold the answer to living an authentic and fulfilling life, one that is in harmony with our souls.
Ralph Waldo Emerson was a spiritual revolutionary whose profound vision of human potential came to define the American character. Known as America’s original Stoic, he offered a radical message of optimism, authenticity, and self-realization that is more necessary today than ever.
In this timely, remarkable book, noted memoirist and teacher Mark Matousek reveals the depths of Emerson’s extraordinary wisdom, demonstrating how his timeless philosophy can help us navigate the challenges of contemporary life. Using personal stories, psychological research, and life lessons from Emerson and his contemporaries—including Thoreau and Whitman—he offers practical lessons in the art of living.
They include:
ON ORIGINALITY—Character is everything
ON PERSPECTIVE—You are how you see
ON NONCONFORMITY—Build your own world
ON RESILIENCE—Without confidence, the universe is against you
ON VITALITY—A stream of power runs through you
And more
Emerson’s far-reaching vision of excellence and spiritual flourishing is the medicine we need to heal ourselves. “Trust yourself,” he teaches. “Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.” This philosophy of hope, known as transcendentalism, is the vein of gold in the American psyche. Lessons from an American Stoic helps us to reclaim our national treasure.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this contemplative essay collection, memoirist Matousek (When You're Falling, Dive) draws life lessons from the philosophy of Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882), "the eloquent voice of America's conscience." Specifically, Matousek focuses on Emerson's thinking on self-reliance, and how it can "dispel the illusion of our powerlessness" in a society that can feel fragile or dangerous. The author encourages readers to "cultivate the art of being alone" to develop self-knowledge ("With practice, solitude becomes the ‘place where we are least alone'"), forge resilience that's inextricable from vulnerability (or, as Emerson wrote, "Our strength grows out of our weakness"), and adopt a practice of journaling (Emerson's journal was his "closest companion" beginning at age 14). Emerson's worldview is cogently conveyed, and readers will find comfort in his principles' staying power and the knowledge that what Matousek dubs America's current "torn-in-half feeling of tenuous survival" is anything but new. Those looking for commonsense guidance to a more self-directed life will find it here.
